1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to rubber stamps, and, more particularly, to a stencil stamp set including a stamp device and a plurality of stencils for forming a plurality of different printed patterns.
2. Summary of the Background Art
The patent literature includes a number of descriptions of stencil stamps in which a stencil, including a perforated pattern defining an image to be printed, extends across a lower surface of a pad containing ink, with the stencil and the ink pad being tied together, to move together, as the stamp is used. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,986,175 describes a stamp which may be provided with a number of replaceable and removable stencils, which are releasably carried on a lower surface of the ink pad, preferably by means of a band. A compressible stand-off is placed at each end of the stencil, so that the stencil and ink pad can be moved along the surface of a document into the desired position before the ink is placed against the document.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,894,794 describes a stencil stamp in which the stencil extends past edges of the ink pad being formed upward along the sides of the ink pad. The stamp unit additionally includes a skirt member attached to the ink pad with the skirt member having a substrate formed with a through-hole at its center. Guides provided on the substrate of the skirt member guide the stencil sheet, and prevent the leakage of ink from corner portions of the stencil sheet.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,642,665 describes a stencil stamp assembly having a triangularly-shaped central member with an ink pad extending across its lower surface, and a plate member extending upward and inward, along each of the sloped sides of the triangularly-shaped central member. The stencil extends along the lower surface of the ink pad and upward between the central member and the plate member at each side of the central member.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,586,500 describes a stencil stamp that is provided with a plurality of individually replaceable stencil stamp blocks, each of which includes a stencil extending under an individual ink pad and upward along the ends of the ink pad. This multi-block arrangement can be used to produce multi-color images and to allow variations to be made in an image by changing certain of the blocks.